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amen doglover

muckandgrind wrote:

Doglover wrote:Bottom line - there is still a lot of time for the '95s to grow, get stronger, get distracted, etc. No telling who the top players will be by the time these boys are seniors much less ready for Division 1. Dads can come on here and promote their players all they want, but it won't make it happen for them. The kids need to want it for themselves and be willing to work hard enough to achieve it. At 14-15 years of age, there are so many factors to consider. The ones at the top of the pack now have the advantage but it's up to them what they do with that. Many kids that got big young and were launched to the head of the pack as a result, may find themselves losing ground in HS if their skills and desire don't keep pace when the other kids hit their growing spurts. Prepare your players - manage expectations - they need to be the ones who want to succeed beyond HS.

All what you say is true, but it's not too early to start projecting...hell, I know for a fact that most college scouts have files already started on the top 95's right now...It's about at this age (14-15) that the elite players start to seperate themselves from the pack.

Does that mean it's too late for others to join that elite group? Of course not...

In Canada, it's the 14-15 year olds that are being scouted and soon to be drafted in into the CHL (Major Junior), so why would it be a stretch to start projecting which 14-15 American kids looks like the strong favorites to play Division 1 hockey?



Disclaimer: I do NOT have a son rostered on Breakaway or the Blades, nor could I ever imagine that any of my sons would one day play anything more competitive than a local men's league after they finish high school hockey.

Doglover you hit it right on. Players growth periods as we know develop at different ages. Some of these so called "elite" players at the moment may not be noticed in the latter years of High School where as a "non elite" player at the moment will be highlited. I can tell you there are players out there that are very good and not playing for the Blades or Machine. The players/parents have decided this is not the direction they wanted to consume there time/money in, but are still working on there skills in the off season. Grant it if you do play Triple A hockey you have a better chance at exposure, but like the Doglover stated all kids have the opportunity to advance only if the desire is there

Nobodyonya wrote:

muckandgrind wrote:

Doglover wrote:Bottom line - there is still a lot of time for the '95s to grow, get stronger, get distracted, etc. No telling who the top players will be by the time these boys are seniors much less ready for Division 1. Dads can come on here and promote their players all they want, but it won't make it happen for them. The kids need to want it for themselves and be willing to work hard enough to achieve it. At 14-15 years of age, there are so many factors to consider. The ones at the top of the pack now have the advantage but it's up to them what they do with that. Many kids that got big young and were launched to the head of the pack as a result, may find themselves losing ground in HS if their skills and desire don't keep pace when the other kids hit their growing spurts. Prepare your players - manage expectations - they need to be the ones who want to succeed beyond HS.

All what you say is true, but it's not too early to start projecting...hell, I know for a fact that most college scouts have files already started on the top 95's right now...It's about at this age (14-15) that the elite players start to seperate themselves from the pack.

Does that mean it's too late for others to join that elite group? Of course not...

In Canada, it's the 14-15 year olds that are being scouted and soon to be drafted in into the CHL (Major Junior), so why would it be a stretch to start projecting which 14-15 American kids looks like the strong favorites to play Division 1 hockey?



Disclaimer: I do NOT have a son rostered on Breakaway or the Blades, nor could I ever imagine that any of my sons would one day play anything more competitive than a local men's league after they finish high school hockey.

Doglover you hit it right on. Players growth periods as we know develop at different ages. Some of these so called "elite" players at the moment may not be noticed in the latter years of High School where as a "non elite" player at the moment will be highlited. I can tell you there are players out there that are very good and not playing for the Blades or Machine. The players/parents have decided this is not the direction they wanted to consume there time/money in, but are still working on there skills in the off season. Grant it if you do play Triple A hockey you have a better chance at exposure, but like the Doglover stated all kids have the opportunity to advance only if the desire is there

No question...but there are very few "secret" elite-calibre players out there at the 95 level. Most of the top level kids are already known and are being scouted. If these kids aren't playing for the Blades/Breakaway/Icemen or LSS, they are probably showing up at the Super Series or the other spring tournaments.

Definitely, there are a few kids who aren't currently at that elite-level, but with hard work and some additional physical maturing will attain that elite status.

But if you look at this history of most Division 1 and NHL hockey players coming out of Minnesota, you will find that most of them were on the radar by the time they were 14-15 years old. People use Nick Leddy has an example because of how much he grew in HS, but he also played for the Icemen AAA team and was pretty much well-known in the hockey community as a solid youth player albeit a "smallish" player.